To be a true hero, kid, is a dying art

[suddenly, Johto network: a boy and his giraffe! Sora is standing right outside the entrance to the Goldenrod Gym, Puddles snuffling at his face as he gives his four-legged friend a final once over. bowtie? check! freshly washed and shiny coat? double-check! looks like Puddles has got himself another hot date with a certain gym leader's Girafarig- it also looks like the trusty old Teddy-cam is doing what he does best: recording conversations he shouldn't be.]

[Puddles bleats and nudges Sora again, as if questioningly.] What?

[kid and giraffe both tilt their heads as they stare at each other.] ... It's okay, really. Riku's already got the Plain Badge, so we can get to Violet and back just fine. I don't need to get it myself. [Sora flails a little as Puddles practically sticks his snout in his eye. BUT TRAINER, DON'T YOU WANT TO BE A MASTER? I MEAN, I'D STILL BE FURIOUS IF YOU EVEN THOUGHT ABOUT HURTING MY HONEY BUNCHES OF OATS, AND I WOULD BLEAT ANGRILY AT YOU FOR HOURS AFTER THE BATTLE, BUT--]

Hey- Knock it off, Puddles! That's someone really special in there, isn't it? I know she's supposed to battle for Whitney, and lots of other people have already battled her... but you still hate it when she gets hurt. Right?

[Puddles bobs his head. yes, Trainer is right, it tears Puddles up inside when she so much as stubs a hoof- you should see him fret when someone inflicts a status on her. Sora... lifts a hand and rubs at his own messy hair awkwardly.]

Look, I... I know how you feel, okay? That's why I can't battle Whitney- and I'm not going to. So... don't worry about it. Go on and have a good time.

[Sora has to swipe his arm out of the way when Puddles turns to avoid being bitten by his tail- but he doesn't really pay it much mind. he doesn't seem to notice the wide-eyed Teddiursa with the pokégear, either. he simply turns in the direction of the Radio Tower looming in the distance, presumably the same place he'd been eyeing warily for days.]

[around 4 or so this morning, Sora had been lying in his bed in the pokécenter, awake, not very comfortable, and bored out of his mind. not a whole lot was going on over the network, and Sora didn't want to wake Hope or Rise or Puddles or anybody else nearby. there were, however, two people he had no problem bothering: Riku got a smattering of text messages full of bad puns-- hey, he needed to practice them on someone! right? but shortly after he sent Kairi a text asking if she was awake, and where she was, a new message popped up on his pokégear screen:]

error: this number is no longer in use.

[... and that's when he silently swung his legs over the side of his bed and grabbed a few things-- including his pokémon asleep in their balls and his notebook-- and for the first time this entire week, Sora creeped out of his room and successfully snuck out of the Goldenrod Pokécenter.]

[first things first-- Sora lurched his way over to the closest vending machine and picked up two bottles of soda. he... made an honest effort to chug them, but wound up dumping the contents of the second bottle into a nearby sewer. it wasn't the soda he was interested in, anyway. next, he walked over to the radio tower-- he couldn't really see the ocean over the fence nearby, but he could hear it... seems no matter where you go, the ocean always sounds the same. he sat down, leaning against both the radio tower and a newly hatched Dratini for support, and began writing.]

( ooc cut: letter to Kairi )

[when the video feed clicks on later that morning, the sun's out in full force by the radio tower. the sound cuts in right in the middle of Sora saying something.]

--tini, could you throw this in the ocean for me?

[the Dratini nods, and wraps its tail around the neck of a bottle with a note carefully rolled up inside. with a grunt, it chucks the bottle right over the fence, and both Sora and Pokémon watch as it soars, then plunks right in the ocean. please don't berate them for littering.]

Thanks. I-- [and Sora turns, noticing Bell pointing his gear at him and recording. he still hasn't actually been out and about Goldenrod wearing something other than his pajamas, but he at least thought to put on some shoes and a jacket this time. he steps a little closer, looking down at the 'gear and Bell-- he's smiling genuinely, but there's definitely a tinge of sadness somewhere in there.]

Morning, you guys! I kind of have an odd question. Have you ever been on a date before? I think we're going to set Puddles up with Whitney's Girafarig today.

[look out, Violet City Pokécenter, because not only has Sora's shift filing papers and such ended, but it's Friday-- pay day! he has amassed more pokédollars in three days than he's ever had in his entire life, and he is positively psyched about his new-found riches. pokémon and random town citizens alike scatter when he bursts through the door, his fist that's clutching the envelope pumped in the air triumphantly-- sorry if you happened to be on your way in; he might have just mowed you down in all of his victory.]

Ohhhh yeah! Who wants dinner?

[he's met with a loud chorus from his pokémon-- particularly the tiny little Togepi holding the pokégear. when Sora notices the feed's running, he bends down to look at it, grinning. hello, network!]

Hey, can I ask you guys something?

[ooc; Sora has lame victory poses. :V]

[now, Dapper here hasn't been with his Trainer for very long, but in the short time they have spent together, he's seemed to pick up on Sora's general moods and mannerisms (not that it's difficult to do so): there's the default pretty cheerful Sora, the determined-to-battle-and-win Sora, the frustrated Sora, and most likely Dapper's personal favorite, the Dapper-why-did-you-just-sting-me Sora.]

[but mopey Sora is definitely a new one- new enough for Dapper to see fit to record the occasion like a nature documentary! the feed flicks on to a shot of Route 31, just outside of Violet City. our rare specimen is sitting nearby with his back to the camera, knees drawn up to his chest to serve as a spot to hide his face. Puddles is sitting next to him, nudging at him with a bag of trail mix between its teeth, because food is always a good pick-me-up apparently.]

... It's fine, Puddles. Really.

[When the video feed first clicks on, there isn't much in the way of visuals except blackness, interspersed with the occasional flash of dull light. The sounds are much more fascinating than the sights, as it were: something is snuffling at the pokégear, and after a moment there's a series of sharp thunks, as if someone were rapping against the microphone. Something is trying to eat it.]

-- Hey! Knock it off! Look, there's food in the bag if you're hungry..

[The feed swings around wildly as Sora snatches away and tries to wipe the pokégear off on his jumpsuit, then stops abruptly as he turns it over in his hand and stares straight into the camera, his expression bewildered. This thing looks more high-tech than the lifts in Hollow Bastion.]

Okay, I'm.. not really sure what I was expecting, but the everlasting Darkness is weird.